Plight of injured horse ends in euthanasia

The injured horse that was picked up Thursday on Locust Grove Road had to be euthanized Thursday night.

The female horse, whose owner has not been identified, was put down about 10 p.m. at the horse barn where several horse rescue volunteers were taking care of it.

"We finally called a vet out here to have it euthanized because it was in such bad shape," said Rosie Nodine, who runs the Suds & Scissors kennel off Crest Road in the Upward community. "We could not get anybody to help us with the bill with the Henderson County Sheriff's Office and Henderson County animal control. They would not OK getting medical attention for this help."

She added that animal control officers did stay with the horse until the vet had to put it down.

"The horse practically thrashed and beat its head up and down," she said. "It was a horrible, horrible thing to watch."

Clearing up procedure

The plight of the unclaimed horse highlighted confusion brought on by a new county setup to handle animal complaints, and county officials spent much of the day Friday evaluating what happened and how service could be improved in the future.

Last month, Henderson County commissioners approved a reorganization of animal control that set up an enforcement squad in the Sheriff's Office effective Jan. 1.

The county Animal Control Department still runs the animal shelter. Enforcement of animal control had been run by the code enforcement division.

Assistant County Manager Selena Coffey said she started speaking with Sheriff Rick Davis about taking over animal control last summer.

"I realized the enforcement side was not getting enough authority," Coffey said.

Davis said he spoke with other counties that placed animal control under the sheriff's department.

"In all cases, they said dealing with animal services is problematic but they said it was a much better way of dealing with animal issues," Davis said.

He appointed Lt. Ben McKay to run the animal control division. McKay said it has been a challenge getting the new department running. This week's situation with the unclaimed horse demonstrated some shortcomings in the protocols.

"During the transition, we are going to stub our toes," McKay said. "But we are going to learn."

"He was not very happy that this was pushed and shoved from one place to the other," she said. "The animal shelter stayed out here till 10 o'clock and they could not get the Sheriff's Department to authorize paying for veterinary care."

Moyer said Friday the county is working on a procedure to deal with situations like this. He said the drought has increased the price of hay and the county is dealing with more abandoned horses.

"We are responsible for animal health in the county," Moyer said, "and if that requires a vet bill, we are going to have to pay."

Coffey said the county has agreed to pay for veterinarian service the horse received.

Looking for help

The incident caused the county to update its protocols on dealing with livestock, Coffey said. She said it does not have the resources to deal with large animals and is looking for help from the public.

"A lot of the rescue groups are at capacity," Coffey said.

Animal control needs space, particularly for large animals like cows and horses. Coffey appealed to horsemen or farmers who may have available stalls to contact the county. The Henderson County Animal Shelter is only equipped to handle domesticated dogs and cats.

Calvin Halford said he has picked up five abandoned horses after getting calls from animal control. He helped care for and then dispose of the horse picked up this week.

"We had another old horse that someone had just set out and obviously they've done the same thing to this one," Halford said. "My concern is for the horse but it's also, being a citizen of the county, they're running a real loose ship on this thing."

Coffey said she wants to address the veterinarian problems in next year's budget. She said Animal Services Director Brad Rayfield and McKay are going to meet with veterinarians in the area and see if one could provide services. Coffey said she wants to have a vet under retainer, similar to the way some governments contract for legal services.

She said she felt bad how the situation with the horse turned out.

"The horse thing, I hated that it happened, but it was handled the best way we could with no protocols," she said.

Staffing will increase

Davis said the Sheriff's Department is in the process of staffing the animal services department. He said the department has McKay and two other officers. Davis eventually wants to have a total of six officers in the squad.

Coffey said the county animal control officers were offered positions within the Sheriff's Department. One chose to work in the detention center.

Davis said all of the employees were given the option of becoming certified law enforcement officers. It takes months to take the training and pass required tests.

Having law enforcement officers enforcing animal control laws increases the response time, he said. A sworn officer can get a search warrant or issue criminal violations.

On Tuesday, the enforcement squad responded to a complaint about dogs and cats hoarded at a home outside Hendersonville.

"It shows you how quickly we can respond," Davis said. "Had we not had sworn officers, there may have been further delays."

Coffey said all shelter services will be run by Rayfield and all animal control violations will be enforced by Davis' office. Coffey said people who have an animal control complaint can dial 911 or dial the sheriff's non-emergency number at 697-4911.

Back at Suds & Scissors, Nodine said she was saddened that the abandoned horse died, but she is optimistic because the incident got the attention of several agencies. She said sheriff's deputies and animal control officials visited her house Friday and talked about ways to solve the problem of unclaimed animals, so the next abandoned horse might get better care.